Many in Niger are suffering under coup-related sanctions. Junta backers call it a worthy sacrifice

FILE - Mechanics work on a broken vehicle in Niamey, Niger, Aug. 28, 2023. Families in Niger say they are struggling in the wake of economic sanctions imposed after a military coup three months ago. Neighbouring countries in West Africa have closed their borders with Niger, stymying livestock trade. And residents in the capital, Niamey, say food prices have skyrocketed.

Aubin said there had been “positive responses” from Niger’s neighbors to the idea of reopening borders for a humanitarian corridor, but didn’t give details. Rather than deter the soldiers who deposed Bazoum and keep him under house arrest, the sanctions have emboldened the junta. It has set up a transitional government that could remain in powerwho felt the democratic government performed below their expectations, according to Seidik Abba, a Nigerien researcher and president of the International Center for Reflection for Studies on the Sahel think tank.

“The love of homeland has made us forget the hard times that the entire country is going through,” said Abdou Ali, one supporter in the capital. “No one cares about this rise in the price of goods.”“We are trying to respond to a catastrophic situation for the country,” said Dr. Soumana Sounna Sofiane, secretary-general of the pharmacists’ union in Niger.

Niger is West Africa’s second largest country in landmass but it is landlocked, leaving it heavily reliant on trade with neighbors that now has paused. Food and drug supplies were among the top imported products last year. The U.N.'s resident coordinator fears that the goal of reaching at least 80% of 4.4 million targeted people with humanitarian aid in Niger this year could be in jeopardy.Nearly one in five Nigeriens are thought to be livestock breeders, according to the World Bank. They were able to export live animals worth $10 million to Nigeria in 2021 but are now desperate to find an alternative market.

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